Popular Woodworking Magazine » Boringhttp://www.popularwoodworking.com
Woodworking advice, woodworking plans, woodworking projects and woodworking blogsTue, 03 Mar 2015 19:17:13 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.1WoodOwl Bits Eat Oak for Lunchhttp://www.popularwoodworking.com/workbenches/schwarz-workbenches/woodowl-bits-eat-oak-for-lunch
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/workbenches/schwarz-workbenches/woodowl-bits-eat-oak-for-lunch#commentsWed, 14 Aug 2013 17:15:24 +0000http://www.popularwoodworking.com/?p=265362When building a workbench, boring the dog and holdfast holes is a drag, even with an electric drill. Last month, however, that all changed. While building a French oak Roubo workbench at an event put on by Benchcrafted (details here and the movie is here), Jameel Abraham introduced me to Japanese-made WoodOwl Nail Chipper bits. These bits have three cutting lips and are very nicely made – better than high-quality […]

]]>http://www.popularwoodworking.com/workbenches/schwarz-workbenches/woodowl-bits-eat-oak-for-lunch/feed15Chair Joinery: Tapered Tenons & Tapered Mortiseshttp://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/joinery/chair-joinery-tapered-tenons-tapered-mortises
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/joinery/chair-joinery-tapered-tenons-tapered-mortises#commentsFri, 11 May 2012 12:14:21 +0000http://www.popularwoodworking.com/?p=165211Because chairs take abuse like a rented mule, the simple mortise-and-tenon joint is sometimes not enough. In traditional Windsor chair construction, the legs and spindles are attached to the plank seat using tenons that are cone-shaped along their lengths. So the mortises have to be the same shape. These tapered joints are clever. The more you sit in the chair, the tighter the seat-to-leg joints become. Making these joints requires […]

]]>http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/joinery/chair-joinery-tapered-tenons-tapered-mortises/feed6Tune up a Hand Drill in 30 Minuteshttp://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/tune-up-a-hand-drill-in-30-minutes
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/tune-up-a-hand-drill-in-30-minutes#commentsTue, 17 Apr 2012 17:10:10 +0000http://www.popularwoodworking.com/?p=158351Vintage hand drills – sometimes called “eggbeater drills” – are common, useful and easy to fix up using stuff you already own. You can buy hand drills all day long on eBay and never deplete the world’s supply because they were in every homeowner’s toolbox. When I buy a hand drill, I don’t pay much attention to brand names or model numbers. As long as it’s not some modern plastic […]

]]>http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/tune-up-a-hand-drill-in-30-minutes/feed8New: ‘Mastering Hand Tools: Basic Skills for Balanced Woodworking’http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/new-%e2%80%98mastering-hand-tools-basic-skills-for-balanced-woodworking%e2%80%99
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/new-%e2%80%98mastering-hand-tools-basic-skills-for-balanced-woodworking%e2%80%99#commentsSun, 01 Apr 2012 20:47:47 +0000http://www.popularwoodworking.com/?p=150141If you read this blog, you are probably interested in hand tools. And if you are at the beginning of your journey, this blog entry is for you. Popular Woodworking Magazine commissioned me to make a series of 10 to-the-point videos about hand tools that try to strip away the confusion so you can get to work with a basic set of hand tools and a minimum amount of agony. […]

]]>http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/new-%e2%80%98mastering-hand-tools-basic-skills-for-balanced-woodworking%e2%80%99/feed8How to Drive Brass Screws with Carehttp://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/how-to-drive-brass-screws-with-care
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/how-to-drive-brass-screws-with-care#commentsWed, 14 Mar 2012 22:12:30 +0000http://www.popularwoodworking.com/?p=142901There is some good advice out there on how to drive brass screws when installing furniture hardware. To recap: 1. Use the right-size pilot holes. The bit should be the diameter of the un-threaded portion of the screw. 2. Use good screws. If your brass screws are soft, you should first cut the threads in the pilot hole using a steel screw. Better option: Buy better screws. 3. Use a […]

]]>http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/how-to-drive-brass-screws-with-care/feed22Video: Pegging for Destructionhttp://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/video-pegging-for-destruction
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/video-pegging-for-destruction#commentsMon, 31 Oct 2011 13:48:37 +0000http://www.popularwoodworking.com/?p=111501When I build a reproduction, I try to remain as faithful as I can to the construction of the original – even if my modern brain says it’s not ideal. The original builder of this early 18th-century table used several techniques that wouldn’t fly in a modern shop. For one: The bottom of the drawer is simply nailed on to the drawer sides – no groove. And the solid wood tabletop […]

]]>http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/video-pegging-for-destruction/feed14How to ‘Time’ or ‘Clock’ Your Screw Headshttp://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/how-to-%e2%80%98time%e2%80%99-or-%e2%80%98clock-your-screw-heads
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/how-to-%e2%80%98time%e2%80%99-or-%e2%80%98clock-your-screw-heads#commentsTue, 20 Sep 2011 13:57:23 +0000http://www.popularwoodworking.com/?p=109378First a warning: Don’t read this blog entry if you already obsess too much over the details of your furniture. This entry could only make things worse. Years ago, a high-end finish carpenter infected me with a disease for which there is no cure: clocking your screw heads. What is “clocking” – sometimes called “timing?” This is when you get the slots in all your screw heads to line up, […]

]]>http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/how-to-%e2%80%98time%e2%80%99-or-%e2%80%98clock-your-screw-heads/feed58Don’t Forget About Sindelar’s Event This Weekendhttp://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/don%e2%80%99t-forget-about-sindelar%e2%80%99s-event-this-weekend
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/don%e2%80%99t-forget-about-sindelar%e2%80%99s-event-this-weekend#commentsTue, 31 May 2011 18:13:27 +0000http://www.popularwoodworking.com/?p=105554Quick reminder: I’ll be in southwest Michigan this Saturday (June 4) giving demonstrations and generally mopping up the drool in my vicinity at the open house of tool collector John Sindelar. Sindelar is going to open crates of tools that haven’t seen the light of day in decades. And his tool museum is outrageous. Words just don’t do it justice. Yeah, you might have seen Sindelar’s traveling museum at Woodworking […]

]]>http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/don%e2%80%99t-forget-about-sindelar%e2%80%99s-event-this-weekend/feed3A Chip-resistant Drill Press Fencehttp://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/a-chip-resistant-drill-press-fence
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/a-chip-resistant-drill-press-fence#commentsTue, 31 May 2011 12:48:45 +0000http://www.popularwoodworking.com/?p=105516File this one under: Tricks that everyone knows but me. Whenever I work against a fence on my drill press, I constantly huff and sweep the table clear of shavings. Why? If even one errant shaving gets between the fence and your work, you can spoil your hole. I’ve had enough spoiled holes in my lifetime. A few years ago, Kelly Mehler showed me the following dirt-simple trick and I […]

]]>http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/chris-schwarz-blog/a-chip-resistant-drill-press-fence/feed23/4″ Up-cut Spiral Router Bithttp://www.popularwoodworking.com/workbenches/schwarz-workbenches/34%e2%80%9d-upspiral-router-bit
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/workbenches/schwarz-workbenches/34%e2%80%9d-upspiral-router-bit#commentsFri, 27 May 2011 15:27:26 +0000http://www.popularwoodworking.com/?p=105477In my blog earlier this week on drilling holes for bench dogs and holdfasts I mentioned a 3/4”-diameter up-cut spiral bit we use in a plunge router to make perfect holes. Several readers have asked where to get this magic router bit. The bit is made by Onsrud, has a 1/2” shank and can be purchased a couple places. Woodcraft, carries it, although the bit (#03K53) is sometimes back-ordered in […]